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Yes Prime Minister

Sharply satirical stage version, from the writers of the original TV series.

Location

I'm a Yes, Minister/Yes, Prime Minister virgin; an anomalous status, of course, akin to going along to see Fake That or The Rolling Clones while wholly ignorant of the real thing.

The pitch for this 2010 TV spin-off was clear: a satire on the bumbling travails of Kim Hacker, a prime minister at sea sans paddle amid a whirlpool of troubles – climate change, the euro, a drunken home secretary – to which is piled on a lascivious politician from Central Asia, demanding three London 'call girls' as the price of his acquiescence in a hefty arms-for-cash deal. This is essentially a blowing-up and stretching-out of the original 28 minute TV episodes, the effects of inflation being, I thought, evident in the script. The sex worker supply problem, once stated and then grasped by the audience, was kicked around at length so that action drifted around in circles rather than assuming linear form. After the interval, there was an all-but-audible clanking of gears as we shifted from sharpish satire to outright farce - rushing about, shouting and an all-too-neat wrapping up of the disasters. Cutting the running time by half an hour would, I think, concentrate the thrust of the action.

The flow of one-liners was steady, some of them inspired. As Hacker and her coterie kick the King's Cross to Chequers logistics problem around, the Private Secretary chips in: 'We have a helicopter standing by this weekend. The one the Queen uses! ' - but to my ears some of the humour was mechanical. The centre of power has shifted these days, from Civil Service mandarins to even less accountable figures like Alastair Campbell and now the sinister Dominic Cummings.

This was a workmanlike production from Fiasco Theatre in the Wesley Memorial Church, whose Gothic Revival oak panelling provides a plausible Chequers atmosphere and a whiff of Messrs Gladstone and Disraeli, whose latter-day descendants grapple here with the familiar dilemma of morality versus save-our-necks expediency. The extemporized raised stage has, though, the drawback of a cavernous space immediately above the actors, their words at times half-swallowed up, especially early on. It might help were the action brought even further forward to the very edge of the stage.

Liz Bishop in the long and tricky role of Hacker, after rather an uncertain start, grew in stature as her acolytes were losing their collective heads. Paul Barrand's Sir Humphrey was smoothly accomplished in ironic detachment, and Chris Cooper gave his Private Secretary considerable integrity amid the moral equivocation. I particularly enjoyed Kelly Ann Stewart's Policy Unit Head, with skilful reaction acting and movement. Her phone call to a CIA buddy was a delight, and both here and in last year's King Charles III she gave indications of an acting future beyond the amateur ranks.

Whether this drama has legs for the future seem uncertain. Life is now imitating art. The weaselly bulldozing of norms by Boris Johnson is pushing back the frontiers of democratic acceptability, so that the shenanigans on offer here seemed a bit anodyne in comparison.

When you take on an institution like Yes, Prime Minister, you tread a delicate line. Do you simply ham up your impressions of the lead characters for all you’re worth? Or do you bring a fresh interpretation and risk alienating the devotees of the original BBC sitcom who have come for a little nostalgia? This Fiasco Theatre production, from M.B. Entertainment, shows that you can get away with a bit of both.

For those who are unfamiliar with the classic TV series, Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister lifted the lid on the machinations of 1980s government by chronicling the career of Jim Hacker MP as, to quote writers Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn, he “failed his way to the top”. His ambitions were simultaneously thwarted and championed by the devastatingly suave civil service mandarin Sir Humphrey Appleby and Hacker’s Personal Private Secretary, Bernard Woolley.

Stepping into the cavernous shoes of Paul Eddington, Nigel Hawthorne and Derek Fowlds for this production we had Liz Mente-Bishop as Kim Hacker, Paul Barrand as Sir Humphrey and Chris Cooper as Bernard. And, bearing in mind this is an amateur ensemble, they met the challenge with spirit and considerable conviction.

The play itself is an affectionate homage to the original series, replete with in-jokes and references to many of the classic moments. We find Bernard inadvertently interviewed by the press, the Vehicle Licensing Centre brandished as a career-ending backwater and a cheerfully corrupt foreign ambassador, played with deadpan timing by Martin O’Neill.

Die-hard fans have everything they could wish for in the plot and the script. Once again Hacker is confronted with a scenario in which she is plunged into a conflict that pits her political ambition against her moral compass. Only the steadfastly amoral Sir Humphrey and Bernard (the latter still refining his moral vacuum) can save the day, despite the meddling of Hacker’s political advisor Claire Sutton, played with engaging gusto by Kelly Ann Stewart.

Paul Barrand has made a fine study of Nigel Hawthorne’s defining evocation of Sir Humphrey. Here was the emollience, the urbanity, the deadly charm and the occasional bluster. From the judicious pursing of the lips to the piercing, eyebrow-heavy scrutiny, Barrand’s performance anchored the production in the soul of the original. It would have been preposterous to play it any other way and he was eminently watchable throughout.

Chris Cooper made Bernard a little more spikey and confident than his TV counterpart but the essential character was still there, and the performance brought some valuable energy to proceedings.

As the Prime Minister, Liz Mente-Bishop wasted no time attempting to conjure a female version of Jim Hacker. Instead, she brought a new interpretation of the character, bringing out the more farcical aspects of the role, although this meant that some classic Hacker-isms sometimes got lost in the crossfire.

Though not quite a period piece, the play itself is not as sharp as it must have been when it opened in a pre-Brexit, pre-Trumpian world. Even so, the essential themes of political expediency, bureaucratic befuddlement and the illusory nature of power are still ruefully relevant, even if you’re not particularly a fan of the TV series.

But if Hacker, Sir Humphrey and Bernard were part of your political coming of age, then this production is a highly enjoyable chance to see them jousting and manoeuvring all over again

Good to see the stage show Yes Prime Minister at the Wesley Memorial Church this week, and it runs to Saturday 28th. A great production, cast and all round entertainment. Lots of funny and topical content, even though I think the stage version is coming up to a ten years anniversary? Odd how things come around. A Government in crisis. Chequers meetings in chaos. Special Advisers causing more damage than they solve. Global warming as a policy stunt. Skirting Royal displeasure! The ghost of Jeffrey Epstein lurking in the wings, sort of. I loved it. A great central location, makes for an all round great night out. Catch it if you can.

27 Sep 2019

The organiser says:

“The UK is in crisis: debt is spiralling, unemployment is on the rise and the fragile coalition cabinet is at breaking point!” – believe or not, this is fiction! From the writers of the original television series Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, comes the equally sharply satirical stage version of Yes, Prime Minister, coming to Oxford this September.

Led by Liz Mente–Bishop, named a 'Gem of versatility' for her theatre and known for TV appearances such as ‘Britain’s Deadliest Lovers' and 'The Real Zero Dark Thirty', the Oxfordshire-based cast were honoured to be joined by John Howell, MP for South Oxfordshire, for a Q&A to help them gain a greater understanding of government, and hone in on their characters. After a considerable number of questions and with great patience, knowledge and humour, John was able to put the cast on the right path for running the country!

Yes, Prime Minister is being directed by Dan Whitley, who met Liz when they worked together on Oxford Theatre Guild's 2018 production of King Charles III. Liz also played the PM in that production - a very different character to Yes, Prime Minister's Hacker. They have chosen to perform in the Wesley Memorial Church, as they feel it presents the grandeur that one might find at Chequers.

The play does not disappoint, providing the same relentless comedy, chaos and mayhem as the original series, so much so that rehearsals have followed a similar direction, with many a moment of disarray and hysteria, only being kept in order by Dan’s authoritative teacher demeanour.

For more information on the full cast and crew, along with booking details, visit their website.